cautley



July 15, 1952 M. R. CAUTLEY FLEXIBLE CONTAINER FOR CLOTHES AND THE LIKE Filed Sept. 15. 1950 m T O N E V W.

MARGARET R. CAUTLEY ATTORNEYS Patented July 15, 1952 FLEXIBLE CONTAINER FOR CLOTHES AND THE LIKE Margaret R. Cautley, South Bend, Ind. 7 Application September 15, 1959, Serial No. 185,079

4 Claims.

This invention relates to a flexible container or receptacle and more particularly to a combined pouch and bag type of container which is especially adapted for use in connection with either the home laundry or a public laundry.

The principal object of the present invention is to provide a convenient fiat flexible container which is readily adaptable for holding or transporting soiled or clean dry or wet wash, indoors or outdoors.

Another object of the invention is to provide a novel flat flexible container of 'the above type which is so constituted and arranged as to be readily formed into a bag for holding or transporting soiled, or clean dry clothes, or wet wash, indoors or outdoors.

Another object of the invention is to provide a novel flexible container of the above type which is so constituted and arranged asto be readily formed into a bag to hold soiled clothes anywhere in the home and for transporting them to the laundry where it can be spread fiat to feed the clothes into a tub or washing machine, then receive the clean wet clothes and be readily formed into a convenient bag to transport the wet clothes from the laundry to the drying space Where it can be used as a pouch hanging on the clothesline from which clothes can be taken and hung for drying.

A further object resides in providing a single sheet of flexible material on which soiled clothes can be laid for sorting before washing and onto which wet clothes can be laid after washing, with a novel arrangement of supporting straps so that thesheet may be readily converted from a fiat type of container, to a bag type of container, or to a pouch type of 'containerfor efficientlyhandling the clothes before laundering and during the laundering and drying operations.

A still further object includes the provision of a novel construction of the above type which may be folded-to occupy a relatively small space when not in use and which may be manufactured at a. relatively low. cost.

Other objects and novel features of the invention will appear more fully hereinafter from a consideration of the following detailed description when taken in connection with the accompanying drawing illustrative of one form of the invention. It is to be expressly understood however, that the drawing is utilized for purposes of illustration only and is not to be taken as a definition of the limits of the invention, reference being had for this purpose to the appended claims.

(Cl. ISO-1.8)

In the drawing, wherein similar reference characters refer to similar parts throughout the several views,

Fig. 1 is a plan view of the container when used as a flat receptacle in unassernbled condition;

Fig. 2 is a front view of the container when assembled to form a pouch and hung from a suitable support such as a clothesline or wall;

Fig. 3 is a front view of the container when assembled to form a bag;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged partial view showing end of the pouch of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is an enlarged partial view showing the manner of connecting a pair of straps with the bracket when the container is formed as a bag; and

Fig. 6 is an enlarged sectional view taken along line 6-6 of Fig. 4. 7

Referring more particularly to Fig. 1, a flexible container embodying the principles of the present invention is illustrated therein in an unassembled condition, as including a trapezoidal-shaped sheet H) of flexible material such as plastic or water proofed fabric, provided with a plurality of straps I 2, l4, i6 and [8 respectively secured to the corners of the sheet it and extending outwardly of the edges thereof to form loops 2%, 22, 24 and 25. As will appear more fully hereinafter, the

sheet I0 is adapted to be assembled into a pouch 28, as shown in Fig. 2, or into a bag 30, as illustrated in Fig. 3, these forms of containers being exceedingly convenient in handling clothes prior to and following the laundering and drying operations. In Fig. 1,- the supporting brackets -38, referred to hereinafter, have been omitted.

In order to provide means for supporting the pouch 28 and the bag 33 from a clothesline 32 or other support, a pair of similar brackets 34' and 36 are associated with the loops 20, 22, 24 and 26. As shown, each bracket is provided with a body portion 38 having an integrally formed supporting lip 49, the body portion also having a pair of spaced slots 42 and 44 and a hook 46. Preferably, the straps l2, l4, l6 and [8 have their opposite ends heat sealed or otherwise secured to the opposite faces of the sheet l0, and the loops;

20 and 22 are received within the slots 42 and 44 so that the brackets 34 and 36 are permanently attached to the loops, see Fig. 6. Opposite portions of the straps [6, I8, I2 and I4 are offset from each other, in order to facilitate the opening and the passing of the users hand through the loops formed by said straps in order to firmly grasp the receptacle, and as shown, the oppositeportions of the straps l6 and I!) are secured together along lines 48 and 50. In this manner, the straps l6 and I8 form the long loops 24 and 26, and also form short loops 52 and 54, these being provided for a purpose which will appear more fully hereinafter.

As shown in Fig. 1, the sheet I is formed to provide a pair of parallel opposite end portions 56 and 58 of different lengths, and a pair of opposite side portions 60 and 62 of equal length. Due to this construction, when the pouch 2B is formed, see Fig. 2, the longer end portion 58 dips downwardly and away from the end portion 56 so as to provide a mouth 64 for the pouch and facilitate the loading and unloading thereof. It will also be seen from Figs. 2 and 4 that the long loops 24 and 26 are received within the hooks 46 of the brackets 34 and 36. Thus the end portion 58 is positioned below the end portion 56 in order to further facilitate the loading and unloading of the container when formed as a pouch.

When it is desired to assemble the sheet In into the bag 30 illustrated in Figs. 3 and 5, the shorter loops 52 and 54 are engaged in the hooks 46 and the brackets 34 and 36 are moved adjacent each other. In this position the four corners of the sheet In are supported by the four loops 20, 22, 52 and 54. As shown in Fig. 5, the loop 54, as well as loop 52, is slightly shorter than the loops 20 and 22 so that when the bag 30 is formed, the end portions 56 and 58 are positioned at substantially the same level. The bag 30, thus formed, is well suited to receive soiled clothes or to carry wet wash from the laundry to the drying area.

In operation, if it is desired to assemble the sheet [0 into the bag 30 of Fig. 3, it is only necessary to bring the four loops 2!), 22, 52 and 54 together at the central portion of the sheet and firmly grasp the loops in order to transport the bag and contents from one place to another. In the event that the bag is to be supported from a clothesline 32 for example, the lips 40 are engaged with the line and the loops 52 and 54 are slipped on to the hooks 46. On the other hand, if it is desired to form the sheet into a pouch, it is only necessary to engage the long loops 24 and 26 with the hooks 46 and separate the brackets 34 and 36 in the manner shown in Figs. 2 and 4. When in this position, the edge portion 58 is lower than the edge portion 56 and dips below and away from the latter to form the mouth 64. This construction materially facilitates the loading and unloading of the pouch. The pouch when in use forms a convenient container for receiving the clean dry clothes after removal thereof from the clothesline. When full, the loops 52 and 54 may be put on the hooks 46 and all four loops moved together in the manner illustrated in Fig. 4 to form the bag 30 for carrying the clothes to the laundry for sprinkling before ironing. Brackets 34 and 36, as shown, are provided with openings 66 for hanging the container on wall-supported hooks or screws if desired. Preferably, each bracket is formed with two such openings, one in the body portion 38, and one in the lip 40, these openings being in registry with each other.

From the foregoing, it will be readily seen that the present invention provides a relatively simple but unusually effective construction for forming a bag or pouch from a single sheet of flexible material. The use of the two pairs of loops 24, 26 and 52, 54 of different lengths materially contributes to the effectiveness of the container when formed as a bag or as a, pouch. A further feature resides in the use of the edge portion 58 which is of greater length than the edge portion 56, such a construction enabling the formation of an open mouth 64 for the pouch 28. In the drawing, the brackets 34 and 36 have been illustrated as being associated with the loops 2!], 22, 24 and 26 in such a manner that when the device is supported upon the clothesline 32, the lips 40 of the brackets face the user. It will be understood however that this arrangement of the brackets is merely for purposes of illustration, it being obvious that the brackets could be assembled with respect to the loops 20, 22, 24 and 26 so that the lips 40 face away from the user.

While one embodiment of the invention has been shown and described herein with considerable particularity, it will be well understood by those skilled in the art that various modifications may be resorted to without departing from the spirit of the invention. Reference will therefore be had to the appended claims for a definition of the limits of the invention.

What is claimed is:

l. A container for laundry and the like comprising a trapezoidal-shaped sheet of flexible material having parallel opposite end portions of different lengths, and side portions of equal length, a pair of straps having opposite ends thereof secured to opposite faces of the sheet and respectively positioned at opposite ends of the shorter end portion, said straps being formed to provide loops of equal length extending outwardly of the sheet, and a second pair of straps having opposite ends thereof secured to opposite faces of the sheet and respectively positioned at opposite ends of the longer end portion, the second pair of straps being formed to provide loops of equal length extending outwardly of the sheet, said sheet being folded along a line between the end portions thereof to form a pouch and to bring respective loops of said pairs of loops adjacent each other for supporting the pouch, the loops of the second pair of straps being longer than the loops of the first pair of straps so that when the pouch is supported by all of said loops, the longer end portion of the sheet will be positioned below the shorter end portion thereof to provide an open mouth for the pouch.

2. 'A container as set forth in claim 1 wherein each of the longer loops of the second pair of straps are secured together intermediate their ends to form a shorter loop substantially equal in length to the loops of the first pair of straps.

3. A container for laundry and the like comprising a trapezoidal-shaped sheet of flexible material folded along a line between the opposite parallel end portions, straps secured to the four corners of the sheet and formed to provide loops for supporting the folded material from adjacent pairs of corners to form a pouch, one of said end portions being longer than the other end portion to dip downwardly and away from the latter and form an open mouth for the pouch, and the loops supporting the longer end portion being longer than the other loops so that the longer end portion will be positioned below said other end portion to facilita use of the pouch. 1

4. A container for laundry and thelike comprising a trapezoidal-shaped sheet of flexible material folded along a line between the opposite parallel end portions, a strap secured to opposite corners of the sheet adjacent the ends of one end portion and formed to provide loops, a bracket secured to each loop and provided with a supporting part for engagement with a clothesline or the like, a strap secured to opposite corners of the sheet adjacent the ends of the other end portion and formed to provide loops, a hook formed on each of said brackets for respectively receiving the last named loops, said other end portion being longer than said one end portion to dip downwardly and away from the latter and form a pouch having an open mouth, and the loops supporting the longer end portion being longer than the first named loops so that the longer end portion will be positioned below the first named end portion to facilitate use of the pouch.

MARGARET R. CAUTLEY.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 

